Shloka 24
Doṣa-Parīkṣā and Guṇa-Viveka
Examination of Faults and Discernment of the Guṇas
पुरुष: प्रकृतिर्बुद्धि्विषयाश्रेन्द्रियाणि च । अहंकारो5भिमानश्व समूहो भूतसंज्ञक:
puruṣaḥ prakṛtir buddhir viṣayāś cendriyāṇi ca | ahaṅkāro ’bhimānaś ca samūho bhūtasaṃjñakaḥ ||
ଭୀଷ୍ମ କହିଲେ—ପୁରୁଷ, ପ୍ରକୃତି, ବୁଦ୍ଧି, ପାଞ୍ଚ ବିଷୟ, ଦଶ ଇନ୍ଦ୍ରିୟ, ଅହଂକାର, ମନ ଏବଂ ‘ମହାଭୂତ’ ନାମରେ ପରିଚିତ ଭୂତସମୂହ—ଏହି ପଚିଶ ତତ୍ତ୍ୱର ସମାହାରକୁ ହିଁ ‘ପ୍ରାଣୀ’ କୁହାଯାଏ।
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse defines the ‘living being’ as an aggregate of twenty-five Sāṅkhya principles—consciousness (puruṣa) plus the evolutes of nature (prakṛti): intellect, egoity/identification, the sense-objects, the sense-faculties, and the elemental aggregate. The ethical implication is that recognizing these as components helps one dis-identify from them and act with steadiness and restraint.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma and liberation-oriented wisdom. Here he shifts into a Sāṅkhya-style analysis, enumerating the constituents of embodied existence to support discernment (viveka) and inner peace after the war.